Chapter 92
The instructors who sensed something strange from the viewing orb immediately rushed out of the building.
They instinctively realized that something ominous was happening, but they tried their best to remain calm.
Because if they lost their reason here, something even worse could happen.
“What is this. Is this a barrier?”
But the moment they stepped outside, they could not help but be horrified.
Because a magical barrier had been set up.
As if a massive glass wall had been erected, whenever they tried to move forward, they were repelled and could not pass beyond it.
Their bodies even tingled as well.
It seemed that a shock-inducing spell had been layered on it too.
The instructors’ faces darkened further.
“Those Wraith bastards have come all the way here…… damn it.”
At Kenrick’s muttering, Nike stepped up first to organize the situation.
“For now, we need to figure out what to do about this barrier. Fiona.”
“Yes. I’ll handle it.”
“We’ll look for places where the barrier might not be set.”
Although Nike gave those orders, she already knew that there would be no gaps in the barrier, nor any way to break it.
Because Fiona, like the other instructors, was merely a ‘swordsman.’
A swordsman who knew a bit of healing magic.
To be blunt, she did not have the ability to quickly decipher a magical barrier like this.
Rache bit down hard on his lower lip.
The barrier surrounded only this building.
In other words, something was happening in the forest.
Rache recalled the ‘something’ he had seen earlier through the viewing orb.
‘It looked like a monster.’
It had been roaming through the forest, and in the direction it was heading was Daphne’s team.
Rache was engulfed by anxiety.
A Wraith had appeared.
That Wraith had created something like a monster.
That monster was trying to kill Daphne……
Rache’s jaw began to tremble.
He tightly gripped his sword.
Rache was not a Guardian with exceptional swordsmanship.
But even so, he could not just stand by and do nothing.
“Hiyaah!”
He swung his sword toward the barrier.
Bang!
His body was pushed back by the impact, but he did not give up.
He swung his sword once more.
“Rache! Stop it!”
Nike shouted in alarm, but he did not stop.
“You’ll ruin your hand! You can’t!”
Slash!
He swung his sword again.
As expected, the sword bounced off the barrier, and the recoil sent intense pain surging through Rache’s body.
“Cough!”
“Rache!”
As if he had suffered internal injuries, a mouthful of dark red blood spilled out.
Rache grit his teeth.
Negative images unfolded in his mind.
Daphne’s corpse kept flickering before his eyes.
“Daphne……!”
And so Rache grabbed his sword once again.
Even if his body could not endure it, he would charge at the barrier no matter what……!
“Rache! Stop!”
Just as his sword was swung once more.
“A barrier isn’t something you break with brute force. It seems everyone’s lost their composure.”
A gentle voice tickled Rache’s ear, and a soft embrace pulled him in.
Rache sharply lifted his head.
Immediately, he saw the face of a handsome man.
Huh?
“I’ll do it for you.”
The man placed his hand on the barrier.
At once, with a shaaah sound, the barrier disappeared.
“……Huh?”
Seeing the barrier that had caused them so much trouble vanish in an instant, the instructors stared with their mouths agape.
“What. How did you do that?”
Leaving the flustered Kenrick behind, Nike stepped forward.
Eyeing the suspicious-looking man, Nike narrowed her eyes.
“Who are you?”
She placed her hand on her sword as if ready to cut him down at any moment.
At that, the man—Shio—raised both hands and smiled harmlessly.
“Ah. You don’t need to be so wary. I
am Daphne’s…… um…….”
What should he say?
Daphne’s friend?
Daphne’s helper?
Or…….
“Slave. Slave number two.”
Ah.
Shio nodded in agreement with Teiti’s
words.
“Yes. I am Daphne’s slave.”
“……?”
Is this real?
“Daphne! Wake up!”
The children shouted as they checked on the collapsed Daphne.
With trembling hands, they lifted her, and fortunately, she was still breathing, which brought them some relief.
But that did not mean Daphne’s condition looked fine.
“S-she threw up a lot of blood. Isn’t that a lethal amount?”
“Was Daphne always weak? I never saw any sign of it.”
They cautiously looked at Daphne’s face, pale like a corpse.
“……A hero.”
At that moment, Rache muttered.
“There was that newspaper article before. About Daphne…… sacrificing her body to stop a terror incident.”
“…….”
“I thought it was a lie…….”
“So it was true.”
The atmosphere grew solemn.
“Then this time too…… did she sacrifice herself?”
“…….”
Each of the children bowed their heads deeply in silence.
They wanted to mourn and reflect on Daphne’s sacrifice.
“Daphne. We will never forget your sacrifice. We will keep you in our hearts……”
“Daphne isn’t dead yet, you lunatics!”
Cilia shouted at them and took control of the children.
“For now, let’s go down the mountain. Getting out of here and treating Daphne is what matters. Joshua, you were the first to talk about sacrifice nonsense. You carry her.”
“……Understood.”
Joshua obediently took Daphne, and they hurriedly prepared to head down the mountain.
“Quickly, let’s go. I’m scared that thing might come back to life.”
“Don’t say that. Words can come true.”
“Come on. That’s ridiculous. It’s already dead…… huh?”
Shock filled Teppy’s eyes.
This can’t be real.
How could this happen?
No, had unbelievable scenes like this been happening all day long?
Teppy’s mouth fell open.
“Hey, hey, over there!”
He drew the children’s attention, and only then did they look in the direction he was pointing.
There lay the corpse of a chimera cut in half, but only the elephant’s torso remained.
Which meant the snake-shaped head was wriggling.
[Kkeeeek!]
“…….”
The children stared at the revived, insane zombie chimera, then at each other, then back at the chimera, and finally shouted in unison.
“Run!”
“Aaah! What is that thing?!”
“It’s gone crazy!”
The children began running with all the strength they had.
But the half chimera was a snake.
A snake that moved by scraping its belly along the ground.
A snake far faster than the children’s running speed.
“We’re going to get caught……!”
Teppy squeezed his eyes shut.
He expected his vision to go dark as the chimera pounced on him.
But strangely, he felt no pain.
He cautiously opened his eyes and saw an astonishing sight.
The chimera was moving past the children and heading forward.
As if they did not matter at all.
“……What?”
Not only Teppy, but the other children sensed something strange as well.
Among them, the one who felt it most strongly was Joshua, who was carrying Daphne.
“Why is it only chasing me?!”
Do even chimeras feel anger?
Was it trying to attack Daphne first, the one who had tried to kill it?
Joshua racked his brain, but in this situation, there was nothing he could do except run.
“Aaah!”
Joshua pumped strength into his legs and ran like mad, but the chimera was right behind him.
It was obvious he would be caught in less than a second.
If he was caught, Daphne would die.
“That……! I can’t let that happen!”
Joshua shouted as he pulled Daphne from his back into his arms.
Daphne had saved them.
Up until now, she had shown no sign of being sick, as if she did not want to reveal her poor health.
But when everyone was in danger, she revealed her frail condition and even sacrificed her body to save them.
That was why Daphne was truly a ‘noble-like’ child.
“I can’t let her die here!”
Joshua gritted his teeth and ran.
The distance between the chimera and Joshua closed to less than half a span.
“Aaah, no!”
“Joshua! Daphne!”
The children’s cries and shocked faces unfolded as if in slow motion.
Joshua squeezed his eyes shut and hugged Daphne even tighter.
Even if his back was cut and his body pierced, he was determined to protect Daphne at all costs.
That was when it happened.
[Kkeeeek!]
The chimera, which had been charging forward boldly, suddenly stopped and lifted its head toward the sky.
At that moment,
thud.
The chimera’s body split vertically in two.
“……Huh?”
“Huh?”
A sword aura that none of them had sensed cut off the chimera’s breath.
“W-was it the instructors?”
It had to be the instructors.
There could not be any other enemies.
The children gathered in small groups and began to guard their surroundings, but that vigilance was immediately lifted by someone’s
appearance.
A man with brilliant blond hair, a clear scar, and a greatsword held in one hand.
He was…….
“I-it’s the warrior!”
Because he was Heros Akion, the warrior.
“Really……?”
“T-the warrior came to save us!”
“Aaah! Thank you!”
The children made a commotion as they breathed sighs of relief, but Heros did not spare them even a glance.
Instead, he walked toward Daphne, who was in Joshua’s arms.
“……Daphne.”
At that, Joshua unconsciously hugged Daphne tighter.
He had heard rumors that the warrior and Daphne were not on good terms.
However, what he heard was a murmur completely different from what he expected.
“Thank goodness. I wasn’t too late.”
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